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Mom on Purpose

~ The lofty side of this is that I am a mom on a mission. I am striving to create a better world by being the best, most inner-directed mother I know how to be. The other side of this is that I became a mom… on purpose. Meaning, I chose this. But man, it can be hard.

Mom on Purpose

Tag Archives: Moving by Design

Strong Kids

22 Saturday Jun 2013

Posted by Dr. Amy Robinson in Crossfit, Moving by Design, My Chiropractic Life

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

crossfit, Kids and Posture, Kids and Strength, Moving by Design

I just got back from the park with Ethan, where we spent our time ‘working out’ – although it felt like play.  For any of you in the ‘Crossfit world’, we essentially turned our park visit into a kids-version WOD (workout of the day).  It came about on our walk home from the library, when he stopped me to ask, “Mom, can we stop and do more pull ups like last night?” And so we did, and had lots of fun together (while probably getting some quizzical looks from some of the other parents there).

As a chiropractor who works with kids, I have always been an advocate for kids being active, with daily outdoor time, a variety of activities, and with exercise coming in the form of play.  My advice to parents when they ask what their kids should be doing has been to PLAY;  go to the playground, do monkey bars, climb, dance, do gymnastics, swim and so on.  And the same applies when I’ve had kids in my practice who are facing postural challenges, with the accompanying evidence of lacking good core strength.

So it was somewhat to my surprise this past week while I was re-assessing Ethan that I noted postural patterns showing up that concerned me.  As a child who has been checked and adjusted as necessary since the night he was born – and shows every evidence of being spectacularly healthy and strong – this discovery came with some questions I was forced to ask myself.  (And given that I have a thriving practice full of kids – I realized that I would have to be okay with the possibility of my precious ego getting bruised (Dr. Amy, how could you miss this?!))   However, in order to fulfill my role as his mom in keeping him as healthy as possible, I would have to put my full awareness into WHY this was going on – AND what strategies would be required to change it.  (Ego-be-gone, Dr. Amy – this isn’t about you.  It’s about HIM and what his body needs to THRIVE.)

Firstly – as his mom/chiropractor, I had to ask myself: Had I been objective enough while checking him to provide the best chiropractic care possible to him?  (While this may seem redundant to anyone who is not in this or another similar profession, classically the most difficult people for anyone to take care of are those people – like immediate family – who we are so close to that it blurs the certainty and objectivity we may have while taking care of other people in our offices.) Simply put – this makes it easier to potentially ‘miss’ things that we would see with other people or children.

Secondly – were there any habits that may be underlying this that we had become slack on?  Had we started to allow too much sedentary time?  (And why would this matter?  Well, just picture the rolled in posture of kids on their devices – and you’ll quickly get the idea).

Thirdly – Why was he lacking in strength in some of his core muscles – and what could I do about it?  Did I need to consider any other types of care providers to give us new actions to take?  Massage?  What type of movement did he require?  And would it be enough?

My first step was to put these questions to my go-to resource of the other Life by Design chiropractors I collaborate with.   The general consensus answered my questions in much the way that I anticipated:  1 – Consider having someone else assess him.  And 2 – Look at whether the basic requirements for movement were being fulfilled.  Despite the fact that I teach Move by Design and implement it for myself, I realized that the answer likely lay there.

At first glance, he’s an active kid.  But with a more honest look here, I realized that over the winter months, he had been quite sedentary.  And while now he was in the running club at school, doing track and field, and playing baseball, there was no focus on mobility work or strength building – nor a great variety in movements.

Here was my Aha! Moment:  Why don’t I teach my kids their scaled version of Move by Design?  (duh?!)  (Despite a slight degree of “what was I thinking” mindset… DR. AMY…?!,  I’d rather share this thought process and swallow my pride here, knowing it will probably help other parents and kids.)

So now we have a plan in place.  It started today at the park.  We did monkey bars, timed how long he could hang in place, did chin ups, jumping pull ups, and climbed the fire poles.  We did push ups – with strict form, just like at crossfit – timed how long he could hold a plank, worked on proper form for squatting, and did burpees.  We did ‘box jumps’ and step ups onto the picnic table.  And he wanted MORE.  We were having so much fun – possibly as a funny sight as I was still in my work clothes – that we didn’t even notice the other people at the park.  I’m sure some of them may have wondered what we were doing  – and maybe even “Why is that mom making him do that?!”  Except that from the look of sheer joy on his face, and his excited cries of ‘What else can I do?!”, combined with our laughter – there was no doubt that this was still play.

As a mom who loves to work out, build strength and test my abilities, it was lots of fun seeing this in Ethan.  (Obviously not for the first time).  Just when I thought it should be time to call it quits, he insisted on more.  And so I gave him a series of movements in the same form as a WOD at Crossfit:

2 rounds of:

3 step ups on the park bench

50 m sprint

3 burpees

50 m sprint

3 chin ups

Rest 30 seconds and repeat.

On our walk home, he was laying out our ‘plan’ of training 3 times a week.  Once with a focus on strength work – pull ups, push ups, squats (etc); once with a focus on metabolic training – sprints, jumps and timed races (etc); and once with a focus on balance and gymnastics – monkey bars/bar work, handstands, headstands and balancing poses. He’s all game for doing it all – plus mobility work with the foam roller and lacrosse ball.  And I’m thinking that my own weekly regime of working out 3 times a week may just have doubled…  AND I have no doubt that Audra will be on board, too.

I guess our summer has just added to its routine.  And I for one can’t wait to watch and measure how things change.

(Looking for more?  Check out http://www.crossfitkids.com)

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Just a little wrong all day

27 Wednesday Feb 2013

Posted by Dr. Amy Robinson in Creating Health, Crossfit, Eating by Design, Moving by Design

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

crossfit, Eating by Design, Moving by Design

I think my theme today would be that I was just a little wrong.  All day.

It seems like everything I did was just a little off.  Not bad.  Just not quite right.

It started with my workout at Crossfit Bradford.  15 rope climbs interspersed with a lift called a snatch.  Now, I like rope climbs – like I wrote about in a previous blog... but I thought 7 in one workout was a lot. 15 might just be enough to be obscene, at least if you have the “not-quite-right” technique that I use.  I work way too hard, burn out my forearms, and don’t use the power of my legs to get me up the rope.  That would be just too easy, I guess.  But being the stubborn person that I can be, I think I got through them by sheer determination.  Slowly.

The ultimate “little bit wrong” was getting to the point of reaching within inches of the top at one point – I think it was on rope climb number 8 – and not being able to hold on for that one extra reach.  Unfortunately that’s considered a “no rep” in the crossfit world – which means that it simply doesn’t count.  So I ended up doing 16 *&%^%- ing rope climbs instead of 15… and on my last one it happened again.  Inches shy, and I just couldn’t hold on for that one last pull.

Without another thought, I called it a day – frustrated with my hands that wouldn’t grip anymore.  I guess I figured that I could count myself as completing the workout since I was only short by inches, making up for it with a whole other 15-foot rope climb (14 and a half to be exact).  For the first time in all of the 180+ workouts I’ve done there, I think I was beat.  Almost just didn’t quite cut it today.

To salvage my day, I decided to spend the rest of the day making meals for my family.  I get a great sense of accomplishment out of knowing that there are good, healthy meals sitting in my fridge or freezer.  Cooking isn’t rocket science.  It wouldn’t overtax me.  It would be perfect for my mood today.

And though it wasn’t all a flop, two more “little bit wrongs” rounded out the day.  First, I decided to make a grain-free pizza dough.  It took quite a bit of work, and certainly didn’t spread out that way it was supposed to (and stuck to the parchment paper, too – what a pain)  Looking at the itty-bitty pizza that was supposed to feed our whole family, I kind of hoped no one would like it… since there was no way that there would be enough to go around if my usually-ravenous crew wanted enough to fill their bellies.  Happily – and unfortunately – it was a hit.  But we ate it kind of like an appetizer.  Out came the leftover pulled pork from last night to make up the difference.  Not a flop, but not quite right… again.

Thinking I had just a little saving grace in the large pot of chili I was making on the stove to freeze, I took it easy on myself for the dinner fiasco.  Until, of course, I added in the spice mix for the chili (check out the one I usually use on Robb Wolf’s site if you’re interested). This winter I’ve been experimenting with making my own spice mixes, but have neglected to properly label them.  And voila – we have a new, unintentional experiment bubbling on our stove:  chili with Josh Rogan curry spices.  Might it be yummy?  Possibly.  That mix rocks when I put it in our favourite curried lamb stew.  But in chili?  I just don’t know.  For now, this final oops has rounded out my day of well-intended actions that went just a little awry.

I know I could focus on what I did well today, as I usually do.  But while I’m certainly not going to dwell on these little details, I think that I’m just going to accept that today, I was just a little bit off.  All day.

Tomorrow I’ll be stellar.

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Moving and Playing like a Kid

23 Saturday Feb 2013

Posted by Dr. Amy Robinson in Creating Health, Crossfit, Fully expressed, Moving by Design

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

crossfit, Kids at play, Mobility, Moving by Design, Staying Young, Strength

Today I’m thinking about movement and play.  I’m thinking about how climbing, tumbling, rolling and balancing is so inherently part of most childhoods.  I’m thinking about how as a kid it’s a part of every day play to race our friends, see who can lift the heaviest thing, carry the heaviest person the farthest… and all in friendly competition against ourselves and others.  What a great way to build strength and self confidence.

Personally, I can remember priding myself on my strength, speed and toughness as a kid.  I remember wanting to be just as good as all the older kids… and definitely as good (or better) than all of the boys.  I remember the day I beat Ian (“the fastest kid”) in a race; and the day I had the fastest time for running around the block.  I remember the multiple obstacle courses and “mini-olympics” we set up in our back yard – and the flocks of kids who wanted to participate.  I remember The Tree we climbed (a really high one, I might add) – and all just for fun.  I am quite certain that some of my own competitiveness in sport has its roots in these early experiences.

And now, as I look at my own kids, I hope that we are giving them enough of a playground to build their own strength and confidence.  I hope that we give them enough opportunities to explore their own capabilities.  And I truly and sincerely hope that most of the children I meet have the chance to do the same.

Don’t get me wrong, we have given our kids lots of great experiences:  back-country canoeing/camping in Algonguin, climbing mountains in the Rockies, jumping waves in the Atlantic ocean, swimming, boating, boogie-boarding, hiking, skiing, rock climbing and more.  But in our day-to-day life?  I think we sometimes can play a little more often.  Especially in the wintertime.  In the winter it seems our playtime comes in spurts rather than in daily doses. (Kind of like: play hard… or hibernate)

As for me, flash forward a few decades, and other than being a mom who wants my kids to be strong, healthy and capable, I also am feeling the push to try new skills myself.  Maybe it’s due to a workout yesterday with lots of handstand pushups, followed by time “playing” on the bars.  Maybe in part due to a talk I gave today to a group of yoga instructors – all about the principles in Life by Design – and the essential role movement, mobility and strength plays in helping each of us strive for exceptional health.  Maybe it was watching Ethan explain his cardboard box transmogrifier/time machine (he’s recently become a fan of Calvin and Hobbes)  and the realization that the date on his time machine in 2086 will make me 110 years old…  and my thought was not “would I still be here?”  It was more like: “I’ll be getting pretty old and wrinkly by then.”  Obviously I’ll have to take exceptional care of myself to reach that one… but I think I’m up for it…

And so, in the spirit of moving, playing and being young, I am noticing that one of my new-found joys is the gymnastics components in crossfit.  Headstands, handstands, balancing feats, rope climbs, rolling and tumbling all make me feel like a kid at play.  I see a new move and I think to myself: “I wonder if I can do that?!”  Just like today, when I watched this awesome video:

Maybe I’m about to become a 37-year-old gymnast..?!  Sounds like fun to me.

photo-24

As for my kids, I want them to find what lights them up, plays up their abilities, creates strength, and let’s them try new things.  I’ll just check in every once in a while to make sure they can still run fast, lift heavy stuff, perform acrobatic feats (or at least attempt them) and play hard.  Just for the heck of it.  Because they can.  Because they are designed to move and play – and to never forget it.

Strong, healthy and fit. Full of adventure and full of LIFE.  That’s what it’s all about.

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The lofty side of this is that I am a mom on a mission. I am striving to create a better world by being the best, most inner-directed mother I know how to be. The other side of this is that I became a mom.... on purpose. Meaning, I chose this. But man, it can be hard.

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Mom on Purpose

The lofty side of this is that I am a mom on a mission. I am striving to create a better world by being the best, most inner-directed mother I know how to be. The other side of this is that I became a mom... on purpose. Meaning, I chose this. But man, it can be hard.

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